


nice to see you again

by supersapphics



Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-21
Updated: 2019-07-21
Packaged: 2020-07-10 06:41:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,385
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19901455
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/supersapphics/pseuds/supersapphics
Summary: Clary and Izzy almost had something during college, but lost their chance and then were separated for a decade afterward.Now, ten years later, they meet at their college reunion and have a second chance.





	nice to see you again

**Author's Note:**

> This is my second prompt for the fic bingo! I'm on team blue and this fulfills the prompt "post-college meet-cute"!

“Is it weird that I‘m this nervous?” Clary asks.

“A bit,” Aline confirms. “It’s probably not as big of a deal as you’re imagining, you know.”

“It’s my ten year university reunion, though. What exactly have I accomplished in the last decade?”

“Um, a lot?” Aline picks up a gold necklace from Clary’s jewelry box and holds it up to Clary’s throat. She studies Clary for a moment, then shakes her head and returns the necklace to the box.

“You went to that three-year art fellowship in Paris right after graduation and then you worked throughout Europe as an art consultant for years. How is that not something to be proud of?”

“Because I’m an art consultant, not an artist. I haven’t sold a painting in years. What does that say about me?”

“Hey.” Aline turns around and grabs Clary by the shoulders. “It says nothing bad about you. It says that you built a strong career for yourself and have been wildly successful. Ok?”

“Ok,” Clary repeats in a quiet voice. “Thanks, Aline.”

“What are friends for?” Aline asks, smiling warmly at her. “Now, try this necklace. It should look great with that dress you picked out.”

Clary walks into the school gym and is pleasantly surprised by how good it looks. She barely recognizes the room, in fact, without the dodgeballs and sobbing students. She hadn’t been involved with the decorating committee because she’d only returned to town a few days ago, but she’s really impressed with everything – the streamers, the banners, the food set out.

There’s dozens of students milling around, most of whom she recognizes. She isn’t in the mood to deal with them yet, though, so she walks off to the side of the room to examine the cake instead.

It just so turns out that the nametags are set out on the table next to the cake, so she finds hers and pins it to her dress. When she looks back at the table, she also notices a nametag from someone she instantly recognizes: Isabelle Lightwood.

She feels a little shiver going through her when she reads the name. Oh, Isabelle – seeing her name ignites a flood of memories. 

Isabelle had been her big what if during school. They hadn’t had any classes together – Clary had studied art and Isabelle had been premed – but they’d met through mutual friends and had been close the entire four years. Clary had hoped they’d become closer, but it had just been bad timing – neither of them had been ready to come out yet. Then Clary had been accepted into her art fellowship in Paris and Isabelle had gone off to med school, and they’d booth been so busy that they’d had difficulty keeping in touch. Now they were going to be on the same continent for the first time in a decade and Clary had no idea how she was going to react. What should she say? Should she play it cool? Act like everything was normal and pretend like there was no history between them? Or should she bring it up and risk Isabelle letting her down gently? That would be humiliating.

She pulls out her phone and types a quick text to Aline.

CLARY: _Emergency!_

ALINE: _What’s wrong?_

CLARY: _I just found Izzy’s nametag. What should I do when she knows up?_

ALINE: _The girl you had a crush on before in university?_

CLARY: _Yeah, and I don’t know what to do when she shows up_

ALINE: _This possibility didn’t occur to you before?_

CLARY: _No! I was too busy being nervous about people asking me why they haven’t seen any of my paintings in a museum lately!_

ALINE: _It’s going to be fine! Just act normal around her and don’t bring it up unless she does_

CLARY: _Ok, thanks. I should’ve asked you to come with me so you could keep me calm_

ALINE: _I’m already Helen’s date to her reunion. I love you but my wife comes first in this scenario. Sorry babe :(_

CLARY: _It’s ok, I understand. Just wish me luck._

ALINE: _Luck!!!_

“Clary?” a familiar voice asks.

Clary spins around and there she is: Isabelle Lightwood. She looks stunning, exactly like she had ten years ago. Her dark hair is tumbling down her shoulders and back and she’s wearing a black dress that’s tight enough to cling to her curves but still manages to look classy and sophisticated. And best of all, she’s smiling, like she’s genuinely pleased to see Clary.

“Isabelle,” Clary says, and is proud that her voice only wavers slightly.

“It’s so good to see you,” Isabelle continues. “It’s been – wow, it’s really been ten years, huh?”

“Yeah, it has.” Clary swallows hard and tucks a strand of hair behind her ear. “How have you been?”

“I’ve been good. I finished my residency a couple of years ago and now I work a minimum of 80 of hours a week, so…I’m exhausted…but I’m helping people like I wanted, so I guess I can’t really complain.” Isabelle is still smiling at her, so warmly that Clary is a little breathless when she finishes speaking.

“That’s so great. I always knew you’d make it.”

“Thanks.” Isabelle’s smile widens even further. “But what about you, huh? You’re a bigshot too, Miss Famous Artist. I’ve been reading about you in magazines on a regular basis for the past decade.”

“Yeah, well.” Clary starts twirling a strand of hair around her finger, a nervous habit she often starts without thinking.

“Don’t play modest,” Isabelle chides, lightly smacking Clary’s wrist. “You’re incredible and you know it.”

“I haven’t painted anything in two years,” Clary blurts out. She has no idea why she did, it just slips out. “I wanted to be a great artist and all I’ve done is help sell other people’s art.”

Isabelle frowns, looking confused. “But you are a great artist. I mean, I still have all of those pieces you made for me when we were in school together.”

Clary blinks. That is the absolute last thing she had been expecting Isabelle to say. “You do?”

“Of course I do! You made them for me and that made me feel special. Besides, they were really, really good – throwing them away would have been like a crime.”

“That’s – that’s so sweet.” Clary swallows hard again, but this time it’s to smother the lump in her throat. She can’t believe her work she’d done as a 19 year old had meant so much to Isabelle that she’d kept them for 13 years, despite them not having seen each other for ten of those years. And suddenly she realizes that it’s ok she hasn’t been the successful artist she’d always dreamed of – because Aline had been right, she’d still made a great career for herself. She’d lived in Paris and now she was back home, where she had great friends, and was talking to her college crush, who apparently still cared about her. Everything was fine.

“I really mean it.” Isabelle reaches out and squeezes Clary’s hand. Clary smiles at her, her eyes a little watery, and the two of them simply smile at one another for several seconds.

“Clary, I have something to tell you,” Isabelle says after a moment of comfortable silence. “I don’t want to make you uncomfortable, so if I do, just tell me, ok? I can take it.”

“Ok…”

“I really regret that nothing ever happened between us during school. I just wasn’t ready back then, but…I’ve thought a lot about you in the past ten years and seeing you here again…it just, I don’t know…I had to say something, to see if you feel the same way and maybe we could, I don’t know, see if there’s still something there?”

“Oh my god, Isabelle.” Clary pulls both of Isabelle’s hands into hers and clutches them tightly. “I am so glad you said that. I was just working up the courage to ask you myself.”

“Really?” Isabelle is beaming now.

“Really.”

“Well, maybe we should celebrate with a kiss,” Isabelle suggests, her eyes practically sparkling. “It is fourteen years in the making, you know.”

“You’re making us sound old,” Clary laughs, wrinkling her nose.

“No, Clary. Everything’s just beginning.” And then she pulls Clary in for a kiss.


End file.
